A gamer is struggling with high temperatures in their PC. They come up with a particularly brilliant idea: They just place the PC on the balcony in the icy air. But this “solution” is heavily debated. Does the cold air damage the gaming system or is it irrelevant?
The user shows with a picture what a significant impact the cold outside air has on their PC. The -10 degrees Celsius outside temperature significantly lowers the inside temperatures of their computer. The temperatures of their Intel processor are between 6 and 9 degrees, which is quite impressive.
But can the “brilliant” idea harm the PC or can one just do that? The community is extremely divided.
Can humidity damage the gaming PC?
These are the reactions: Not everyone is enthusiastic and believes that such an action ultimately harms the gaming PC in the long term. Many explain that the outside humidity must be much higher. In a short time, they are likely to have completely different problems than “high temperatures.” So someone quips (via reddit.com):
Next post: Can cold computers be turned on? I don’t know what happened after I exposed my computer to unusual humidity.
Others see another problem: The computer wouldn’t run continuously for days. If the heavily cooled computer is turned on after several hours, it could harm the system. Because electronic devices and cold don’t mix well. With such sudden temperature fluctuations, condensation can form. And moisture is not good for electronic devices.
However, the user Kingmi123 comes to the thread starter’s defense and replies that humidity is not a big problem. They write (via reddit.com):
In many threads here, it is not taken into account that the saturation point of cold air is always lower than that of warm air.
Cold air is completely saturated with fewer water molecules than hot air. This means that for 100% humidity in cold air, less water must be present in the air than in warm air. Once the saturation point is reached, condensation occurs.
This is the reason why hot air condenses when it hits a cold surface. The air near the cold surface is colder and therefore has a lower saturation point. What is a humidity of 60% in a warm room becomes 100% humid when it hits the cold surface.
Reverse the above scenario as OP does. Cold air comes into contact with a hot surface. The percentage of relative humidity around the components is significantly lower than outside, which means that condensation is practically impossible.
You can observe the principle in winter when you heat your apartment. When warm air hits the cold window surface, the window becomes moist. The biggest problem is when condensate forms. Because water damages computers and can cause a short circuit.
If the humidity in your apartment is very high, it can cause several problems and may even lead to mold. Normally, the humidity in the apartment should be between 50 and 60%. You can check this with a hygrometer, which you can get for a few euros in a specialty store or hardware store.
| Preview | Product | Rating | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
ThermoPro digitales Thermo-Hygrometer Innen Thermometer Raumthermometer mit Aufzeichnung Innen-... | Zu Amazon |
*Affiliate-Links. Wir erhalten bei einem Kauf eine kleine Provision von Amazon. Vielen Dank für Eure Unterstützung!
High temperatures cause various problems in the computer
Why should high temperatures be avoided? When hardware runs under high temperatures significantly, it will eventually run much slower. The processor and graphics card throttle their performance to cope with the heat or shut down in emergencies to protect components.
Additionally, some components wear out faster with high temperature fluctuations or at very high temperatures. Therefore, many gamers try to keep temperatures and possible fluctuations in check and either use extensive air cooling or opt for water cooling right away.
How can you check temperatures? With the small tool HWMonitor, you can easily (and for free) check the temperatures in your computer. The tool reads the data, and you can check them directly.
AMD criticized for high temperatures: In the past, AMD has faced criticism for high temperatures. There were reports of extremely hot GPUs with the new RX-7000 graphics cards. Problems that AMD had to address afterward.
However, the situation is different with processors. In some cases, high temperatures are said to be “normal.” For instance, AMD stated that 95 degrees in the current “Ryzen 7000” generation is completely normal and that the chips are designed for such temperatures (via hardwareluxx.de).
Nevertheless, most gamers are likely to remain concerned when the temperatures in the computer approach 100 degrees.
If you are struggling with high temperatures in your PC, then check out the following guide here on MeinMMO. Here you will find tips and tricks on how to keep your gaming PC cool:
